


Quality Time

by oops_lol



Series: One-shot zutara moments [3]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Making Out, One Shot, Post-Canon, Tea, Zuko's hair, cats exist in the ATLA world, heavy petting?, like I looked it up, that's how dedicated I am
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-18 10:29:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28865559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oops_lol/pseuds/oops_lol
Summary: Katara and Zuko are enjoying afternoon tea when he gets a sudden suspicion that she might be a little too interested in his hair.Dedicated to how Katara loves playing with Zuko's hair because who wouldn't.P.S. The make out was supposed to be two seconds, but then things got too out of hand for the teen rating imo. Oops, lol (omg that's my name whaaat?).
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: One-shot zutara moments [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2210886
Comments: 4
Kudos: 91





	Quality Time

**Author's Note:**

> We all know Zuko has one of the best character redemption arcs ever, but I think he needs more attention for his amazing hair redemption arc.

Originally, the two were having afternoon tea in private, but Katara had other plans. It started out with her claiming Zuko had something in his hair, to simply taking it out of its top knot _‘it’s probably uncomfortable anyway,’_ and now here she was, curled up next to him, blatantly playing with his hair. Zuko had been telling her about his day— ‘because she _asked_ ,’ he thought— until he realized she wasn’t listening.

“So, I was thinking of Toph taking over as Firelord, and I could just go back to being Lee at Uncle’s tea shop.” He flicked his eyes in Katara’s direction, only to see her leaning her head back on the settee, attention hooked on where her hands were. 

“Mhmm, really?” She responded, unconvincingly feigning interest. 

“Yea, and maybe I would cut my hair again. I really miss the Phoenix tail.” She abruptly yanked his hair.

“What?!”

“Okay, ow.” 

“Sorry, but you said you would go back to that stupid ponytail.”

“It’s not a stupid ponytail! It’s—ugh, we’re not getting into this again. Look, I could tell you weren’t listening. I wanted to see what I could get away with.” 

“I was too listening!” 

“Okay, sure.” He rolled his eyes. 

After a moment, she asked in a smaller voice, “you’re not really going to cut your hair, are you?” 

He scoffed. “No, but I think you ripped some of it out.” 

She winced. “I’m sorry.” She leaned up and kissed the top of his head, petting him lightly. 

Normally, he would find the gesture sweet, but right now he thinks she wasn’t even addressing _him_. 

Silence fell over them briefly, broken only by Katara’s occasional humming. She had swept all of his hair to one side before flopping it back to normal. She bit her lip in concentration, seemingly enraptured by his hair. “So, am I just supposed to sit here?” He asked after a few minutes. When she simply hummed in response, he added, “You know, I could be getting work done right now.” 

She paused in her ministrations to look at him, one eyebrow raised. “Oh, please. You would really prefer working? And don’t act like you don’t like it— I believe I remember you _purring_ when I was playing with your hair a few nights ago.” She said as she ruffled his hair. 

Zuko yanked his head away from her to stare at her incredulously, mouth open in mortification. “I—What?! Okay, I do NOT purr. I’m not a damn _cat!"_

When he saw her smug face, his eyes narrowed. She rolled her eyes. “I’m just messing with you, but it is true that you like this. You just don’t want to admit it.” She said, now proudly toying with his hair. “If you hate this so much, you shouldn’t make your hair so silky.” 

“I don’t! It just is!”

Zuko slumped in defeat momentarily, before a new idea struck him. “Is this the only reason why you wanted to spend time with me? You said _we_ needed to spend more time together, but this is feeling very one-sided.” He pouted. 

Katara sighed, dropping her hands. “If you relaxed more and just enjoyed the moment, this wouldn’t be so one-sided.” She swept his bangs out of his face, pulling his hair back to look at him better. Seeing his unrelenting pout, she tilted her head, smiling sweetly at him. “Fine, if this isn’t good enough for you, maybe— I can— make it— more— _pleasurable_ ,” she punctuated the last few words with a kiss on his forehead, cheeks, and nose, the final one lingering on his lips. She smirked when he tried to follow her last kiss— she had obviously piqued his interest. 

He tried to play off his obvious desire to see what she meant, looking off disinterested, “I could be persuaded.” 

She huffed a laugh. “Spirits, Zuko, just shut up and kiss me,” she said, pulling him by his chin into a kiss. He hummed in pleasure as his lips slotted over hers. One of her hands went to his cheek as she tilted her head to get a better angle. Her thumb ran over the ridges of his scar lovingly, and she could feel Zuko instinctively leaning into her touch. His hands drifted to her waist, pulling her closer towards him. She ran her tongue over his lips, and he opened his mouth, deepening the kiss. Eventually, one of his hands brought her knee across his lap so she straddled him. His hands dropped to her hips, pulling her closer to him. She pressed her chest against his as she wrapped her arms around his neck, both moaning into each other’s mouths. 

She pulled back for a moment, murmuring against his lips, “Is the door locked?” 

He smirked, “always, with you,” pulling her close to feel him hard against her. She exhaled a moan at the contact, too distracted to retort. His tongue ran over her parted lips before entangling it with hers again. 

As their kiss heated up, his hands at her hips would occasionally slip inwards, towards the place that ached for his touch most. Every time, the promise alone was enough to have her shudder slightly in his arms, whimpering.

One of his hands instead changed direction to drift up and down her side, grazing against the underside of her breast. When his thumb brushed over her nipple, she jolted with a gasp. It was only a tease, as his hand shifted up her back to her hair, gripping it lightly. He pulled her head to the side, dropping a kiss along her jaw. His head dipped in towards her neck, where he laved hot kisses and dragged his teeth. 

Katara held on as he assaulted her neck, one hand at his shoulder and the other in his hair. She tilted her head back further, allowing him more room to work. She released small moans and whimpers when he focused on more sensitive spots.

“Mmmm, Zuko,” she let out a breathy moan as his tongue trailed down to her clavicle, sucking a mark there. He shifted back up to her neck, smirking when she released a whine in protest. 

Soon enough, Zuko had her panting and squirming in his lap, frustrated with his continuous teasing. Although he loved hearing her whine for him, he wanted her as much as she wanted him. His hands had been slowly drifting towards the tie at her waist, reaching closer and closer. However, his ascent was interrupted when Katara suddenly pulled him up by the hair to her lips, apparently through with his endless teasing. 

She immediately ran her tongue over his lips, as if his mouth held the sweetest nectar. The sudden change in dynamic surprised him, and he was at her mercy while he struggled to catch up. As they kissed, the hand in his hair held him to her. Occasionally, she scratched his scalp as she pulled, unwilling to cede control. She took one of his hands, bringing it up to her chest. He groaned at her unabashed desire, following her lead and kneading her breast. She bit his lip when his thumb rubbed her nipple through her clothes. Just as he was beginning to regain his clarity, she ground against him, effectively silencing his brain and securing control in her favor. He briefly broke the kiss, moaning aloud, as her hips fell into a rhythm against his. 

She could tell he was losing himself to the pleasure as his kisses were becoming more distracted. She slowed the kiss, flicking her tongue at his lips before her mouth drifted past his cheek. She trailed kisses along his jaw, leading to behind his ear, where she sucked a mark. 

He wrapped a hand around her waist, holding her body close while he shifted his hips against hers. He was still a bit too dazed from the onslaught of pleasure to gain the upper hand. He briefly enjoyed the feeling of her hands running through his hair as her soft lips pressed kisses on his neck. His mental fog was broken, however, when he felt her nails dig a bit too harshly into his scalp. 

Suddenly, a new thought struck him. He grabbed her by the shoulders, abruptly pushing her back. “Wait a minute, are you just kissing me to touch my hair?” He asked, still panting slightly.

She was confused as to why they stopped, and for a moment she thought he was joking. When she saw the genuine look of suspicion and slight horror on his face, she laughed out loud at his absurdity. 

“La, Zuko, no. You’re ridiculous.” His face hadn’t shifted at her response. “Can’t I like kissing you _and_ touching your hair?” He still didn’t look satisfied. “If it makes you feel any better, I can confidently say I like kissing you _more_ than playing with your hair…. if I have to prove it to you, I won’t touch your hair ever again.” 

“Well, you don’t have to do _that_ …. I guess I believe you.” 

“Oh, really? Now you believe me?” She asked, eyebrow raised and a knowing glint in her eyes. 

“I mean, you were willing to give it up, so—” 

“Just admit it: you like it when I play with your hair.” 

He tried to go back in for another kiss to end the conversation, but she pushed him back by his shoulders, effectively barring him from anymore until he fessed up. He stared at her resolutely for a bit, determined to win this one out. That is, until he remembered she was just as, if not more, stubborn than him.

He threw his head back, groaning in defeat. “FINE! I…. like it…. when you…. playwithmyhair.” She hummed, smiling in victory. He added, “But I still think you like it more.” 

She kissed his forehead, once again running her hands through his hair. 

“Fair enough.”

\-----------------------------------  
“I can’t believe you really stopped everything just to ask me something so stupid.” 

“Well, I wanted to make sure you weren’t just in this for superficial reasons.” He gestured towards the top of his head.

“One, you are so full of yourself—”

“You know what I mean!”

“AND TWO,” she spoke above him, “If there is any physical reason I’m with you, it’s definitely not your _hair_.”

She leaned in towards him, slowly running her hand up his thigh. His eyes widened, shocked at the sudden change in mood. She bit her lip seductively, looking him in the eyes as he desperately waited for her hand to reach its destination. Suddenly, her hand skipped its target, jabbing him in the stomach. 

“Oof— _fuck_ , Katara!”

“That’s what you get for leading me on earlier.”

“I wasn’t trying to—” He started, however gave up when he saw her unamused face. “Alright, I’m sorry, it was stupid.” He dropped his head, briefly silent before looking up at her. “Maybe we can make up for it now?” He asked with hope in his eyes.

She smirked at him. “Promise not to interrupt again?”

“Agni, yes,” he said with such a desperate look in his eyes, she decided to show some mercy. 

She eyed him playfully, “I guess I could be persuaded.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm a bit obsessed with the idea that Katara loves to play with Zuko's hair. Also, Zuko's hair should be a legitimate tag.


End file.
